Apparatus for inserting terminals into panel members

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for inserting terminals, in the form of a continuous strip, into a panel-like member comprises strip feeding means, a means for partially severing the individual terminals from the strip, and a means, in the form of an inserting ram, which completes the severing operation and inserts a terminal into a panelboard.

United States Patent [1 1 Long, Jr. et al.

[ APPARATUS FOR INSERTING TERMINALS INTO PANEL MEMBERS [75] Inventors:Alden Owen Long, Jr.; Mervin Leonard Shughart, both of Carlisle, Pa.

[73] Assignee: AMP Incorporated, Harrisburg, Pa. [22] Filed: Jan. 26,19,72

[21] Appl. N0.: 220,860

[52] US. Cl. 29/203 B [51] Int. Cl. H05k 13/04 [58] Field of Search29/203 B, 203 D,

29/203 TS, 203 DT, 203 R [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS3,496,626 2/1970 Ullman et al. 29/203 D 1 June 19, 1973 3,553,836 1/1971Cootes 29/203 D Primary Examiner-Thomas H. Eager Attorney-William J.Frederick W. Raring et al.

[57] ABSTRACT Apparatus for inserting terminals, in the form of acontinuous strip, into a panel-like member comprises strip feedingmeans, a means for partially severing the individual terminals from thestrip, and a means, in the form of an inserting ram, which completes thesevering operation and inserts a terminal into a panelboard.

7 Claims, 11 Drawing; Figures W E i 48 Keating, Gerald K. Kita.

PATENTED 1 9m 3. 739.446

IIO

PATENTE m 1 9 ms SHEEISBF'! MW Lill BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Thisinvention is directed to the achievement of an improved apparatus forinserting terminals, in the form of a continuous strip, into apanel-like member such as a printed circuit board or the like.

A known type of electrical terminal adapted to be mounted on a printedcircuit board comprises a boxlike receptacle having a post portionextending therefrom, the post portion being adapted to be insertedthrough a hole in the printed circuit board and soldered to a conductoron the board. The receptacle portion of the terminal is adapted toreceive a conductor which may extend from a conventional dual in-lineintegrated circuit device or a similar solid state device. Dual inlinecircuit devices are manufactured in accordance with strict dimensionaltolerances so that their two rows of leads are spaced apart by aprecisely predetermined distance and the leads are also spaced apart bya predetermined distance. It follows that two rows of receptacles atpredetermined locations are provided on a printed circuit board for eachdual in-line device. Accordingly, electrical receptacles of the typedescribed above are manufactured in the form of a continuous strip whichcomprises two separate rows of receptacles, one row being disposed oneach side of a central continuous carrier strip.

The instant invention is specifically directed to the achievement of animproved apparatus for inserting the terminals of such a dual terminalstrip into a printed circuit board and specifically to an apparatuscapable of inserting two terminals during each operating cycle so thatafter several operating cycles, a sufficient number of terminals willhave been inserted into the board to accomodate a dual in-lineintegrated circuit device.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an improvedapparatus for inserting terminals into printed circuit boards. A furtherobject provides an inserting device which is capable of inserting,during each operation cycle, two receptacles into the circuit board. Astill further object is to provide an inserting apparatus which isspecifically adapted to insert terminals which are manufactured in theform of a continuous terminal strip composed of two rows of terminalsand a separate carrier strip extending between the rows. A still furtherobject is to provide an inserting apparatus having improved severingmeans for severing the individual terminals from the strip prior toinsertion into the printed circuit board.

These and other objects of the invention are achieved in a preferredembodiment thereof which is briefly described in the foregoing abstract,which is described in detail below, and which is shown in theaccompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view ofa preferred form of apparatus inaccordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional side view of the frontal portion of the apparatusof FIG. 1 showing the positions of the insertion rams, the severingblades, and the terminal strip at the beginning of an operating cycle.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are views similar to FIG. 2 but showing the positions ofthe parts at an intermediate stage and at the completion of an operatingcycle.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary frontal view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 showingthe positions of the parts at the completion of the inserting operation.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary side view illustrating engagement of the feedfinger with the terminal strip.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of the lower portion of one ofthe insertion rams illustrating the manner in which the terminal is heldduring the insertion operation.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the lower portion of theinsertion ram.

FIG. 9 is a view taken along the lines 9-9 of FIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the shear block having the movableshear blades thereon for partially severing individual receptacleterminals from the strip.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view which illustrates the severing and bendingsteps carried out by an apparatus in accordance with the inventionduring the insertion operation.

The disclosed embodiment of the invention is adapted to insertindividual receptacle devices 2 into holes 4 in a printed circuit board6. Each receptacle has a generally rectangular portion comprisingsidewalls 8, 10, 12, the wall 12 having an axially extending open seamas shown. A mounting post 114 extends from the wall 8 and is formed tohave a relatively snug fit in the hole 4. The specific terminal deviceshown is more fully described in application Ser. No. l I 1,402 filedFeb. I, 1971 although it will be apparent that the principles of theinvention can be applied to applicators adapted to insert other types ofterminal devices. The individual receptacles are manufactured in theform of a continuous strip 16 comprising a central carrier strip 18which has spaced apart pilot holes 20 and which has laterally extendingarms 22 on each side thereof at regular intervals. Each individualterminal is contained between an adjacent pair of arms and has itsforward end integral with one of the arms 42 and is connected to theadjacent arm by means of a connecting section 26. As previouslymentioned, the strip is advantageously dimensioned such that theindividual receptacles 2 are spaced apart by a distance equal to thespacing between the leads on the opposite sides of a dual in-lineintegrated circuit device.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a preferred form of apparatus 28 in accordancewith the invention comprises a frame consisting of an upper arm 30, alower arm 32, and a vertically extending frame section 34. An anvilplate 36 is mounted on the end of the lower arm 32 against a spacerplate 38 by means ofa suitable fastener 40 threaded through the anvilblock, through spacer plate 38, and into the arm. A pair of notches 44are provided on the upper end of the anvil plate 36 and these notchesdefine support surfaces 42 which are adapted to support the underside ofthe printed circuit board during the insertion operation, the notches 44providing clearance for reception of the post portions of thereceptacles being inserted.

The terminal strip is fed from a suitable supply reel 48 over a guideplate 50 and through an opening, not specifically shown, in the upperframe arm 30. The strip emerges from the lower side of frame arm 30, isguided across and over an additional guide plate 52 and towards therearward end of a terminal applicator 56 mounted, as will be describedbelow, on the upper frame arin 30.

The applicator 46 comprises a housing casting having side walls 74, 76and a front wall 78. Sidewall 76 is secured by suitable fasteners 56 toa side support plate 54 which in turn is secured to one arm of a bracket60. This bracket is also secured to a front cover plate 58 which isdescribed below. The two arms of this bracket extend rightwardly asviewed in FIG. 1 and are adjustably secured by suitable fastening meansas shown to a plate 64 clamped between the arms of another bracket 56which is permanently secured to the end of the frame arm 30. By virtueof this arrangement, the applicator can be lowered or raised byincremental amounts to precisely position it relative to a printedcircuit board supported on the surfaces 42.

The accuating means for the applicator 46 comprises a pneumatic pistoncylinder 68 mounted on the rearwardly facing side of the front coverplate 58. This piston cylinder has a piston rod (not specifically shown)which is coupled to the upper end of the applicator ram 70 which isslidably contained in the applicator housing 72. The side walls of thehousing have suitable side grooves 80 for the sides of this ram and atool mounting plate 82 is secured to the forwardly facing side of theram 70 by means of a fastener 86 that extends through the plate 82 andinto the ram. A pin fixed to the ram 84 is received in a suitable slotin the upper end of the plate 82. Plate 82 has lower end portions 88extending beneath the lower end of the ram as shown in FIG. 2 andrearwardly underneath the downwardly facing side of the ram.

A shear block 90, FIGS. 2 and 10, is secured by fasteners in a suitablerecess in the portion 88 of the tool mounting plate and has twodownwardly projecting shearing blades 92 which are spaced apart by adistance equal to the spacing between the two columns of terminals inthe strip 16. As will be explained below, these shearing blades 92cooperate with fixed shearing blades in the applicator bed to sever theforward ends 24 of the mounting post portions of the terminals fromthe40 associated strip arms 22.

As best shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, two inserting rams 94 are mounted on theforwardly facing side of the lower end of the tool plate by means offasteners 96. These rams are again spaced apart by a distance equal tothe spacing between the two columns of terminals in the strip 16 so thatduring each operating cycle, two terminals will be removed from thestrip and inserted into the printed circuit board. The lower portion ofeach insertion ram 94 is recessed on its rearwardly facing side as shownat 98, FIG. 7, this recess being closed on the lefthand side of the ramas viewed in FIG. 7 by a leaf spring 100. This spring has an upper endportion 102 of reduced width which is received in a shallow slot on thesides of the insertion ram and is secured to this side of the ram bysuitable fasteners 104. The lower portion of the spring 100 is normallybiased against a shoulder surface 105 adjacent to the recess but when areceptacle portion of a terminal is positioned in the recess, the springis flexed slightly outwardly as shown in FIG. 9 so that the receptaclewill be firmly held during the inserting operation.

The applicator has a horizontally extending lower support plate 106which is integral with the lefthand side wall 76 and on which there ismounted a guide plate assembly 108 by means of fasteners 110 whichextend upwardly through the support plate 106. A suitable guide channelis provided between the upper surface of the plate 108 and a cover plate120 for guiding the terminal strip 16 along a precisely predeterminedpath towards the terminal insertion station. The strip is fed by meansofa suitable feed pawl 112 which extends through an opening 119 in coverplate 120 (see FIG. 6) and which is mounted on the end of an arm 114which in turn is pivotally connected to the lower end of an lever 1 16.The lever is oscillated during each operating cycle by a suitable cammechanism, not specifically shown, which is actuating in turn by theapplicator ram, the arrangement being such that the lever is oscillatedin a counterclockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 2 during descent ofthe insertion rams and is returned to its normal position as shown inFIG. 2 by a suitable spring means during ascent of the insertion rams.The clockwise movement of the lever 116 which takes place during theascent of the insertion advances the terminal strip a distance equal tothe spacing between two adjacent terminals in each column whereby theleading terminals of the strip are located precisely beneath theinsertion rams 94.

The plate 108 has a recess 124 adjacent to, and directly beneath, theshearing blades 92. The location of this recess is such that the leadingends of a pair of terminals, that is, the ends of the post portions ofthe terminals, will be located precisely at the edge 125 of this recessso that when the ram reaches the lower limit of its stroke, the shearingblades 92 will cooperate with 0 these edges to shear the leading ends ofthe terminals from the associated carrier arms 22.

The plates 108 are also recessed at their lefthand ends as viewed inFIG. 2 to define another fixed shearing edge 126 for each column ofterminals. This edge 126 is located precisely beneath the rightwardlyfacing side of each insertion ram to effect shearing of the trailingends of the terminals from the strip.

The operation of the disclosed embodiment is as follows:

At the beginning of the operating cycle, the operatingparts will be inthe positions of FIG. 2 with the leading terminals of the stripprecisely positioned adjacent to the edges 126 and beneath the lowerends of the insertion rams 94. The operator actuates a suitable controlswitch, not specifically shown, to cause pressurization of the upper endof the pneumatic piston cylinders 68. Pressurization of the cylindercauses downward movement of the applicator ram and downward travel ofthe insertion rams 94 and the shearing blades 92. The lower ends of theinsertion rams first engage the two leading receptacle terminals of thestrip and bend them downwardly until they are against the forwardlyfacing sides 129 of the plate 108. Upon further downward movement of theinsertion rams, the rams move over the receptacle portions of theterminals until the terminals are disposed in the recesses on the lowerends of the rams and held by the spring members as shown in FIG. 9. Asthe rams continue to move downwardly, a clean shear of the trailing endsof the terminals from the forward ends of the connecting strap portions26 of the strip is achieved and the terminals are then carrieddownwardly and inserted into the openings 4 in the I printed circuitboard. At the limit of the downward stroke of the ram 70, the shearingedges 92 will move past the edges 124 and sever the second row ofterminals which are upstream from the leading terminals from theassociated carrier arms of the strip.

During upward or return of the ram 70 to its initial position, theterminal strip will be fed as previously described and the next adjacentrow of two terminals will be located precisely beneath the ram. Thescrap carrier strip is fed through a suitable guide tube 130 to a scrapcontainer.

An advantageous feature of the invention is that it permits the use ofan extremely durable type of terminal strip having the central carrierstrip 18, the laterally extending carrier arm and the connecting strapportion 26. Terminal strip of this type has the advantage of protectingthe individual terminals during handling and shipment and during feedingof the strip from the reel to the operating or insertion zone of theapplicator. At the same time, the terminals are effectively severed fromthe strip in two separate stages, the first severing operation which iscarried out by the blades 92 serving to prepare the strip for the actualinsertion operation and the severance of the trailing terminals from thestrip by the insertion ram.

Changes in construction will occur to those skilled in the art andvarious apparently different modifications and embodiments may be madewithout departing from the scope of the invention. The matter set forthin the foregoing description and accompanying drawings is offered by wayof illustration only.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for inserting electrical connecting devices into apanel-like member such as a printed circuit board, said electricalconnecting devices being in the form of a continuous strip comprising acarrier strip having transversely extending supporting ears extendingfrom at least one side edge thereof at periodic intervals, saidconnecting devices being on one side of said carrier strip, eachconnecting device extending between two adjacent supporting ears andbeing integral at each end with a supporting ear, said apparatuscomprising:

supporting means for supporting said panel-like member in a first plane,

strip feeding means for intermittently feeding said strip along a firstpath extending parallel to, and spaced from said first plane.

first severing means on said first path for severing the leading end ofeach of said connecting devices from its associated ear during feedingof said strip,

severing and inserting means for severing the leading connecting deviceof said strip at its trailing end from said strip and inserting saidleading connecting device into a panel-like member supported on saidsupporting means,

a ram reciprocable along a predetermined second path, said path,extending transversely of said first path and said plane,

said first severing means comprising a movable severing blade on saidram and a fixed severing member on said second path, said movable andfixed severing members constituting a cooperating pair of severingmembers for severing the said leading end of one of said connectingdevices from one of said ears,

said severing and inserting means comprising a severing and insertingpunches on said ram and a fixed trailing end severing member, saidsevering and inserting punches having gripping means on its end andhaving a severing edge cooperable with said trailing end severingmember, said punches being effective to bend said leading connectingdevice along said second path with concomitant severing thereof fromsaid strip and to insert said device into a panel-like member supportedon said supporting means.

2. Apparatus for inserting electrical connecting devices into apanel-like member such as a printed circuit board, said electricalconnecting devices being in the form of a continuous strip comprising acarrier strip having laterally extending ears extending therefrom atspaced-apart intervals, said connecting devices being on one side ofsaid carrier strip and each connecting device being disposed between twoadjacent ears with its leading and trailing ends integral with said twoadjacent ears, said apparatus comprising:

supporting means for supporting said panel-like member in a referenceplane,

strip feeding means for feeding said strip along a first path which isspaced from, and which extends parallel to, said reference plane,

a ram, said ram being reciprocable along a second path which extendstowards and away from a panel like member supported on said supportingmeans and which intersectssaid first path,

first severing means for severing the leading end of each of saidconnecting devices from its associated ear, said first severing meanscomprising a first movable shearing means on said ram and a first fixedshearing means on said path whereby said leading end is severed whensaid first movable shearing means moves past said first fixed shearingmeans,

a second fixed shearing means on said path located downstream, relativeto the direction of strip feed, from said first fixed shearing means,punch on said ram, said punch having on its lower end bending means forbending the leading connecting device of said strip out of the plane ofsaid strip so that said leading connecting device is parallel to saidsecond path, second movable shearing means cooperable with said secondfixed shearing means, and connecting device holding means for holdingsaid leading connecting device during movement of said punch towardssaid panel-like member whereby, during each operating cycle of saidapparatus, the leading end of a connecting device which is upstream fromthe said leading connecting device is severed from its associated arm,and leading connecting device of said strip is bent out of the plane ofsaid strip, the trailing end of said leading connecting device issevered from said strip, and said leading connecting device is carriedto, and inserted into, said panel-like member.

3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 2 wherein said bending means, saidsecond movable shearing means,

, and said holding means comprise the end of said punch and a recess insaid end, said end of said punch being adapted to engage and bend saidleading connecting device during movement of said ram, said recess beingadapted to receive said leading connecting device after bending thereof,and edge portions of said recess being' movable past said second fixedshearing means to sever said trailing end of said leading connectingdevice from said associated arm.

4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 2, said strip having said laterallyextending ears extending from both sides of said carrier strip andhaving said connecting devices on both sides of said carrier strip, saidapparatus having an additional first severing means, an additionalbending means, an additional second fixed and movable shearing means,and having an additional connecting device holding means.

5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4 including terminal strip feedingmeans for feeding said strip, said feeding means comprising areciprocable feed arm engageable with said carrier strip.

6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 including spring means on said endof said punch for retaining said leading connecting device in saidrecess.

7. Apparatus for inserting electrical connecting devices into apanel-like member such as a printed circuit board, said electricalconnecting devices being in the form of a continuous strip comprising acentral carrier strip having transversely extending supporting earsextending from both side edges thereof at periodic intervals, saidconnecting devices being in two parallel columns with one column on eachside of said carrier strip, each connecting device extending between twoadjacent supporting ears and being integral at each end with asupporting ear, said apparatus comprising:

supporting means for supporting said panel-like member in a first plane,

strip feeding means for intermittently feeding said strip along a firstpath extending parallel to, and spaced from said first plane,

first severing means on said first path for severing the leading end ofeach of said connecting devices from its associated ear during feedingof said strip, severing and inserting means for severing said connectingdevices at the trailing ends thereof from said strip and inserting saidconnecting devices into a panel-like member supported on said supportingmeans,

a ram reciprocable along a predetermined second path, said pathextending transversely of said first path and said plane,

said first severing means comprising two spaced apart said severing andinserting means comprising two spaced apart severing and insertingpunches on said ram and two spaced apart severing members at theintersection of said first and second paths, said severing and insertingpunches each having gripping means on its end and having a severing edgecooperable with one of said trailing end severing members, each of saidpunches each being effective to bend a leading connecting device of saidstrip out of said first path and into said second path, to grasp one ofsaid leading connecting devices, and to move one of said connectingdevices along said second path with concomitant severing thereof fromsaid strip and to insert said devices into a panel-like member supportedon said supporting means.

1. Apparatus for inserting electrical connecting devices into a panel-like member such as a printed circuit board, said electricaL connecting devices being in the form of a continuous strip comprising a carrier strip having transversely extending supporting ears extending from at least one side edge thereof at periodic intervals, said connecting devices being on one side of said carrier strip, each connecting device extending between two adjacent supporting ears and being integral at each end with a supporting ear, said apparatus comprising: supporting means for supporting said panel-like member in a first plane, strip feeding means for intermittently feeding said strip along a first path extending parallel to, and spaced from said first plane. first severing means on said first path for severing the leading end of each of said connecting devices from its associated ear during feeding of said strip, severing and inserting means for severing the leading connecting device of said strip at its trailing end from said strip and inserting said leading connecting device into a panel-like member supported on said supporting means, a ram reciprocable along a predetermined second path, said path, extending transversely of said first path and said plane, said first severing means comprising a movable severing blade on said ram and a fixed severing member on said second path, said movable and fixed severing members constituting a cooperating pair of severing members for severing the said leading end of one of said connecting devices from one of said ears, said severing and inserting means comprising a severing and inserting punches on said ram and a fixed trailing end severing member, said severing and inserting punches having gripping means on its end and having a severing edge cooperable with said trailing end severing member, said punches being effective to bend said leading connecting device along said second path with concomitant severing thereof from said strip and to insert said device into a panel-like member supported on said supporting means.
 2. Apparatus for inserting electrical connecting devices into a panel-like member such as a printed circuit board, said electrical connecting devices being in the form of a continuous strip comprising a carrier strip having laterally extending ears extending therefrom at spaced-apart intervals, said connecting devices being on one side of said carrier strip and each connecting device being disposed between two adjacent ears with its leading and trailing ends integral with said two adjacent ears, said apparatus comprising: supporting means for supporting said panel-like member in a reference plane, strip feeding means for feeding said strip along a first path which is spaced from, and which extends parallel to, said reference plane, a ram, said ram being reciprocable along a second path which extends towards and away from a panel like member supported on said supporting means and which intersects said first path, first severing means for severing the leading end of each of said connecting devices from its associated ear, said first severing means comprising a first movable shearing means on said ram and a first fixed shearing means on said path whereby said leading end is severed when said first movable shearing means moves past said first fixed shearing means, a second fixed shearing means on said path located downstream, relative to the direction of strip feed, from said first fixed shearing means, a punch on said ram, said punch having on its lower end bending means for bending the leading connecting device of said strip out of the plane of said strip so that said leading connecting device is parallel to said second path, second movable shearing means cooperable with said second fixed shearing means, and connecting device holding means for holding said leading connecting device during movement of said punch towards said panel-like member whereby, during each operating cycle of said apparatus, the leading end of a connecting device which is upstream from the said leading connecting device is Severed from its associated arm, and leading connecting device of said strip is bent out of the plane of said strip, the trailing end of said leading connecting device is severed from said strip, and said leading connecting device is carried to, and inserted into, said panel-like member.
 3. Apparatus as set forth in claim 2 wherein said bending means, said second movable shearing means, and said holding means comprise the end of said punch and a recess in said end, said end of said punch being adapted to engage and bend said leading connecting device during movement of said ram, said recess being adapted to receive said leading connecting device after bending thereof, and edge portions of said recess being movable past said second fixed shearing means to sever said trailing end of said leading connecting device from said associated arm.
 4. Apparatus as set forth in claim 2, said strip having said laterally extending ears extending from both sides of said carrier strip and having said connecting devices on both sides of said carrier strip, said apparatus having an additional first severing means, an additional bending means, an additional second fixed and movable shearing means, and having an additional connecting device holding means.
 5. Apparatus as set forth in claim 4 including terminal strip feeding means for feeding said strip, said feeding means comprising a reciprocable feed arm engageable with said carrier strip.
 6. Apparatus as set forth in claim 3 including spring means on said end of said punch for retaining said leading connecting device in said recess.
 7. Apparatus for inserting electrical connecting devices into a panel-like member such as a printed circuit board, said electrical connecting devices being in the form of a continuous strip comprising a central carrier strip having transversely extending supporting ears extending from both side edges thereof at periodic intervals, said connecting devices being in two parallel columns with one column on each side of said carrier strip, each connecting device extending between two adjacent supporting ears and being integral at each end with a supporting ear, said apparatus comprising: supporting means for supporting said panel-like member in a first plane, strip feeding means for intermittently feeding said strip along a first path extending parallel to, and spaced from said first plane, first severing means on said first path for severing the leading end of each of said connecting devices from its associated ear during feeding of said strip, severing and inserting means for severing said connecting devices at the trailing ends thereof from said strip and inserting said connecting devices into a panel-like member supported on said supporting means, a ram reciprocable along a predetermined second path, said path extending transversely of said first path and said plane, said first severing means comprising two spaced apart movable severing blades on said ram and two spaced-apart fixed severing members on said second path, each of said movable and fixed severing members comprising constituting a cooperating pair of severing members for severing the said leading end of one of said connecting devices from one of said ears, said severing and inserting means comprising two spaced apart severing and inserting punches on said ram and two spaced apart severing members at the intersection of said first and second paths, said severing and inserting punches each having gripping means on its end and having a severing edge cooperable with one of said trailing end severing members, each of said punches each being effective to bend a leading connecting device of said strip out of said first path and into said second path, to grasp one of said leading connecting devices, and to move one of said connecting devices along said second path with concomitant severing thereof from said strip and to insert said devices into a panel-like member supported on said supporting means. 